I am going to take a night off from thinking about my situation because I have some things really brewing deep in my heart.
There are, as of the exact time I am writing this, Sep. 23, 2013 at 10:08pm Central European Time, the world population is believed to be 7,147,352,122 people. That's over 7 Billion people.... Our minds can't really comprehend this number. Frankly I am not sure I can truly wrap my mind around the number 1,000 and this is 7 million times more! I know that if I want to buy a new car, it might cost me 20,000 dollars or euros, for example, but we don't really go into a car dealership with one dollar bills or 1 euro coins, so we never really understand what these numbers mean.
When I lived in Spokane, there was just over 200,000 people in the city, about 450,000 total in the county and around 600,000 people in the area (including surrounding areas, Coeur d'Alene, ID, etc.) That's still a lot of people. I currently live in a city of about 3.4 million people, approximately 8 people for every person in Spokane County. That's a ridiculously large amount of people.
So I'm sure you're asking why I am telling you all of this.... Well, here's why. This world is seriously messed up. Anyone disagree so far? Okay, so let's look at our lives. I have 24 hours in a day. If I have a job, between commuting and working, lunches, breaks, etc., you're looking at maybe 9-11 hours for that. If you have a spouse and children, well, there goes most of the rest of your time. I said "most" of the rest of your time.
As Christians, God calls us to bear our cross daily. What does that mean? It means that we are supposed to be Christians. Christians was a word first used in the book of Acts, when the people of Antioch called the disciples in the Church this name as sort of a derogatory term, meaning "little Christs". If we call ourselves Christians (or little Christs), what does that look like in a person's life?
I brought up the numbers to give us an idea of the mission we have to help accomplish in our world. There are billions and billions of people in this world that don't know God. Unfortunately, the devil has come up with a number of ways to divert our attention from the goal of helping as many people as possible to make it to heaven. I realized tonight just how much work we have ahead of us if we truly call ourselves Christians, so how have we set up our lives to meet that end?
So, here's how Satan has distracted me. When I was in the states and I had a good paying job, I wanted to buy cars to fix up and enjoy. Over the years, I had purchased and sold many cars, and at a couple different times in my life, I realized that I owned 6 cars at one time. SIX!!! Now, even with earning a good wage, how do you pay for repairs, maintenance, insurance, tabs, etc for SIX vehicles???? At the same time, I was living as a single man, owned a home, had a dog and had plenty of responsibilities with the house. On top of that, I was working 40 hours a week at a very demanding job, and my "to do" list was getting seriously out of hand.
Then when I lost my job and for a few years took jobs that were not enough to pay my bills, I tore through my 401k, and got roommates to help with the cost of my home. It still wasn't enough to keep me from going further into debt. I don't have an extravagant house, it's 800 square feet with a basement. I paid $77,000 for it in 2004. Somehow due to poor financial handling on my part, I took out a 2nd mortgage because I had too much other debt. It definitely lowered my payments, but now I owe over 90k on the house and after nearly 10 years, I do have equity on it, but not much.
When God gave me the idea to move to Germany, I was puzzled. I had worked so hard for this home, I had lived there for 9 years and my life was comfortable and good. Right? Wrong. I had become totally complacent with my life. Now, I'm not necessarily saying it's wrong to own a home or have a dog or a couple of cars. What I am saying is that for me, my stuff started to own me. I was afraid of losing my comfort and my control, and frankly I was afraid of what people would think of me. Of course, what I didn't realize, is that is what I was afraid of (and doing) all along. That is how I lived my life. How would people think of me if I buy a house? What will people think of me for having __________?
We all want comfort and there is no sin in that. However, comfort became my drug of choice. I held on so dearly to it, I indulged in it, I loved it and I never wanted to lose it. It was my idol.
So what is the solution? I decided that if I was going to actually move to Germany, I did not want to be "weighed down" with having all my stuff sit in storage somewhere for who knows how long. One thing I did know, was that life is pretty simple in Germany and I could live in an apartment, sharing the space (and expense) possibly with one or two others.
If I lived in the city, I would not need the expense of a car, I could buy a monthly pass to ride the rails for relatively cheap. Then all I would need is a phone, internet, food and heat. Pretty simple. I was very excited for the chance to completely simplify my life.
But why would I want to do that?
I'll tell you what motivated me. I was so busy with my life. There are 168 hours in a week. I only worked about 40 of those. That leaves me 128 hours every week. 56 hours of sleep per week still leaves me 72 hours to do what I want. Chores and laundry, grocery shopping (etc), maybe another 10 hours per week. That still leaves 62 hours a week. Even with 2 hours commuting each day, still gives you 52 hours of "free time".
So what do I do with that 52 hours every week? What do you do with yours? I know for me, I like to spend a lot of time on facebook or I used to watch a lot of TV. What I don't do is call friends and invite them to dinner, or go out for a walk or jog or to the gym with a friend or neighbor. What I don't do is what this world really needs. The world needs to be around and to experience the friendship and love from Christians. We're no better than anyone. Let me repeat that. We are NO BETTER than anyone, but we do have tools at our disposal that the world does not know about or understand, and love is an extremely powerful thing to someone who's hurting.
Do you ever wonder why people act the way they do? Why they cut you off and then make rude gestures like you did something wrong? Why did that person on the phone or at DMV speak to you so rudely? It's because they are hurting. They have bad marriages, kids that are out of control, maybe they have health issues or a loved one died. Maybe they just lost their job, maybe they were taken to court. Maybe they were involved in a car accident, the possibilities are endless. What are you and I doing to ease the distress in this world? How are you and I being a friend to someone who's hurting? How am I trying to be a solution for someone personally?
I believe that every person in the world can make a positive difference. EVERY PERSON. But we will never be what God wants us to be if we come home and plop down on the couch or stare blankly at the television for hours and hours on end. What are you going to do with your 52 hours this week?
We have 7 billion, 142 million, 358 thousand, 288 people (yes, the population has increased by 6,166 people in the last 42 minutes since I have been writing) that need a friend like you, maybe even a friend like me. I don't expect that every human being in the world will make it to heaven, but is it my stated mission to try a little harder? Can I fill up my 52 hours a week with other people? To love them, to listen to them, to pray with them, and for them? This is what it means to be a Christian. This is the great commission in Matthew 28:18-20 -- "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
If you are a Christian, is this what you build your life around? Are you more concerned about that vacation home, the new iPhone, iPad, Galaxy3, Playstation, car, dog, or mowing the lawn? How can we maximize our effectiveness in our lives and be able to include more and better relationships? For me, the answer was to simplify, to clean house and to make more time in my life. I haven't arrived yet, but I feel I am on the road. I'm grateful every day to have a relationship with the most powerful force in the universe, and I get to call him Abba... dad!
For anyone who loved the band Genesis, they put out a song in the 80's that encapsulates this idea perfectly, it's called "Land of Confusion" (it also had a really cool video). Here are the words of the chorus:
There's too many men, too many people, making too many problems, and not much love to go 'round. Can't you see this is a land of confusion? This is the world we live in, and these are the hands we're given. Use them and let's start trying, to make it a place worth fighting for ... Stand up and let's start showing, just where our lives are going to." -Genesis
Let's make decisions to start using those 52 hours a week to make a difference in the lives of our friends in this world, to join a group of people that share a hobby you enjoy. Find ways to love up on people or just to meet a need. Maybe just go for a coffee with someone. The time is never wasted if you're investing in people.
Vaya con Dios, my friends. Thanks for letting me share my heart tonight.
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